


When The Dust Settles

by thechosentwo



Series: I Know The End AU [2]
Category: Back to the Future (Movies), Back to the Future: The Game
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - College/University, F/F, F/M, Getting to Know Each Other, Idiots in Love, Infidelity, M/M, Original Character(s), they're divorced they just talk about it
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-10
Updated: 2020-09-10
Packaged: 2021-03-06 22:01:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,663
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26386063
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thechosentwo/pseuds/thechosentwo
Summary: After returning home from his trip, Marty has more questions than answers. Finding a place for himself in a home that doesn't fit the same and navigating changing relationships does result in hijinks and mild angst.
Relationships: Emmett "Doc" Brown/Edna Strickland, Emmett "Doc" Brown/Marty McFly, Marty McFly/Jennifer Parker
Series: I Know The End AU [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1917658
Comments: 5
Kudos: 8





	When The Dust Settles

**Author's Note:**

> got to this sooner than expected because I needed a break from thinking about amplified and I got excited to write this <3 shorter chapters than I like to do probably

This bed had to be the most comfortable thing on the planet, marty thought. He took a deep breath, face buried in his pillow, and sprawled until his toes and fingertips hung off the edge. There were advantages to being short. Namely, he could fit perfectly on a full sized mattress and never have to worry about falling off or wasting space. If Marty ever had to use a bunk bed again he simply would not sleep. 

Even the sounds from downstairs that annoyed him were like music. The northern California accent of his family was suddenly foreign and musical. The culture shock had been bad, but this? Oh this was heaven. He was never leaving Hill Valley again. Well... not for a month at least. That would give him plenty of time to get sick of it again. 

Marty sighed and rolled over to his back, staring at the ceiling. He tried to imagine Emmett Brown in Hill Valley, at the diner or in the square. Hell, in his mom's kitchen. He snorted at the image. Even in his head the man looked out of place anywhere but his lab. He was basically a beaker, a tesla coil. It was probably for the best they'd parted ways. 

Yet... he was still dreading his date with Jennifer that afternoon. Marty had been back three days. Any longer would be pushing it. If he put it off a week he'd probably put it off forever. Not that he didn’t want to see her, he just didn’t know what to say. Telling her about Emmett was definitely off the table. No way. He wouldn’t out Emmett and he wasn’t about to come out when he wasn't even sure if he had anything to come out as. 

All Marty had to do was find a way to tell the girl he'd been dating for over a year that he didn’t think he wanted to stay together after all. No big deal. Just crushing both their dreams of marrying the high school sweetheart they thought they were in love with. Marty groaned and threw a pillow across the room. He knew he loved her, just wasn't sure as what anymore. It would easier if he hated her, or if she made him miserable like Emmett's wife. 

Ugh, there he went. Thinking about Emmett again. It was over. It was done. It was a stupid fling that should never have happened and now he was home and had to face the music. Everything was fucked now and it was all because Marty was stupid and lonely. He sat up and swung his feet over the edge of the bed. It was time to deal with his shit, he'd figure out what to say when he got there. 

It didn't help that Jennifer looked as beautiful as he remembered. She'd cut her hair while he was away and it curled playfully at chin level, framing her face. Marty couldn't stop the flush creeping up his neck. Damnit. He should've put more effort into his outfit. Hoodies and jeans were not up to snuff for this girl. She deserved better. 

Offering an awkward smile as he slid into the booth opposite, Marty found himself at a loss for words. 

"Hey there, stranger," Jen said with a smirk. 

Marty laughed, trying to relax. "Hi, Jennifer. How ya been?" 

Jenn shrugged. "Oh, you know, this and that." She played with her straw. "I got that job I told you about at the local paper. You're looking at the Hill Valley Star's newest office aide." 

"Wow, that's great! I know you were looking forward to that," Marty's smile was more genuine at that. "You gonna keep working once classes start?" 

"Depends, I think my boss wasn't too happy when I asked if I could cut my hours." Her foot found Marty's under the table. "I told him he should be thanking me for saving him money on my wages." 

After taking a second to order a Pepsi and a plate of fries to share, they settled into a moment of silence. Marty didn’t play along with the game of footsie, but he didn’t call foul either. 

"Tell me about your trip! What was your favorite place you went?" 

Marty thought the effort Jenn was making was admirable. Once again more than he was giving her. He took a breath and mustered up all the words left in his head. "Oh, Germany for sure," he probably shouldn't have said that since she was definitely going to ask him more questions. "Just uh, real... really good food?" 

Jenn nodded politely. Their fries and refills made it out so Marty took a long drink to give himself time to think. "Crazy how much history there is in the world, huh? We don't even learn anything before the mayflower and that's centuries past things popping off in Europe!" 

Rewarded with the relief in Jenn's eyes at his renewed enthusiasm, he carried on for a few more minutes. There was plenty to talk about that didn't involve old scientists or gay clubs in Italy. Hitting just the highlights to keep from boring her, the conversation quickly shifted to their upcoming semesters.

"Lee wants to get an apartment together next summer but honestly I don't wannn live near that guy's dirty laundry, Dave's grease trap shirts are bad enough. I told him if he can pass all his classes I'll think about it." 

Jennifer laughed. It was good to see her laughing. "I'm shocked he's going! Didn't he want to travel the world by hopping trains or something first?" 

"Well, he figured out you can't see most of it by train anyway so he's getting his pilot license first." 

"Of course, that makes perfect sense," she grinned and reached around the now empty fry basket, laying her hand on his like they'd done so many times. 

Marty’s face froze and his heart stopped. It was such an easy gesture. Everything about this was easy. Jennifer was perfect for him. He was alright for her, he guessed, but that wasn’t really the issue here. The issue was that when she laid her hand on him he felt more distance between them than he had the whole time he was overseas, and he had no idea how to cross that. 

Alright, alright. He knew. "Jenn, I... gotta talk to you about something."

She didn't look phased yet. 

"You know how we said we were taking a break to see other people and all that over the summer?" 

There it was. "Yeah, I remember. What about it?"

"Well... I was just... I was just wondering where you were standing with all of that," he finished, angry with himself for chickening out. 

"Well. I dated a few guys while you were gone. Nothing ended up serious. Two of em were assholes and the third was just kinda weird. From SoCo, you know?" Marty was glad she was acting so casual about it, and that she'd gone through with it at least a little. "I'm still here for you if you want me to be. Where are you?" 

"I..." Marty wished he had a road map to give her, but he was lost in the weeds at midnight with no matches. "I don't know. I don't think I can say either way yet." 

Lying to her would only make it worse later. Even if he couldn't tell her about Emmett, or why he wasn't sure, it wouldn't be fair to make her stick around for something serious he couldn't give her. The hurt in her eyes was glaring though, and Marty winced. She quickly tried to mask it with a brave expression.

"Well we've got almost half a week left of vacation anyway!" She said, going for humor. "Did you... get around? While you were gone?"

"Oh, no, not really," Marty wasn't sure if an affair with a married man counted as 'getting around' but it definitely wasn't in the way she was thinking. "Just confused about a lot of stuff right now. College, work, music," he held up his hand like he was measuring a massive fish, "the whole future."

Another supportive nod. He really didn't deserve her. "Yeah. I get that, I guess."

She didn't. She had everything planned. Go to school, get a degree in journalism while working for the local paper. Get a better job in a city. Work her way up to editor. Become the first female editor of a major newspaper Marty had forgotten the name of. She'd talked about it for ages. Honestly, sometimes he felt like a backup plan. Not that he ever complained. With her ambition he had a little more room to figure himself out. But she didn't get it. Where she saw a paved road he just had deer tracks at best. 

As much as he loved music, it had never offered anything as clear as her passion had given her. The music industry was 30% hard work and 70% sheer luck and connections. You had to have confidence to make it by with any of it. 

"Friends?" He asked, painfully aware of how shitty it sounded. "For now? You can keep dating if you want, I don't mind too much." 

"Sure," she said, "yeah, of course we can be friends for now. I love you, Marty, that's the truth." 

"Thanks. Me too," Marty dropped some money on the table and then hit his forehead. "Shit, I mean I feel the same about you, Jenn, not that I've myself or anything, not that I don’t..."

"Shut up," she said, laughing and rolling her eyes. 

They both got to their feet and walked out, Marty's arm slung over Jennifer’s shoulder. Promising to see each other in class soon, they said goodbye on the sidewalk. It felt weird to leave without trying to kiss her. But he'd said what he said, and he needed to figure his shit out. Jennifer wasn't gonna wait around forever.


End file.
